Adventures in Kitale

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Wednesday, August 6, 2014

We've been working on updating the Precious Kids Center website these past few months, there are a few things still in the works, but it's finally ready. A special thank you to everyone who volunteered their time to help get everything up and running. For more blog updates please visit www.preciouskids.center

Friday, August 1, 2014

Today was closing day, the last day of the second term of the school
year. Now everyone is back home for the month August. Looking forward to
spending time with the big boys that were off at school these past few months.
All the kids did great on their end of the term exams.

We went to pick the kids up and saw everyone sitting outside
for the school wide recognition of the students who performed well.

Frank was recongnized for getting the second highest score
out of his entire fifth grade class.

Pascal was recognized for being the most improved out of all
of the second graders in his class.

It’s great to see these two making such great progress. Just
a few months ago they were living on the streets of Kitale, sniffing glue and
struggling to survive. Now they are trying hard to get their lives on track and
working hard in school. So blessed to be able to be a part of their journeys.

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

This week we met Lina and Damaris. They come from a family of
seven and both have Albinism. When we met my heart was broken by their
situation and the more I learned about their family, the more I knew that I had
to find a way to help them.

The parents have their own little plot of land in an area of
town called Matisi. The main house is clean and furnished, but the girls sleep
outside on dirty, worn out pieces of foam on the floor of their kitchen.

Little Lina's feet were covered with jiggers which can easily be avoided if the children are being properly cared for.

Lina was so shy and withdrawn. She would barely say a word, but just nod when she was spoken too. It was hard to get even a smile out of her.

The mother told us that their father is a drunkard, abusive
and all he cares about is getting his next drink, so most of the providing for
her family lies on her shoulders. Having two children that need a little more
special attention, which involves more finances puts an even bigger strain on
her.

So today Lina moved into the house with the other kids. They
welcomed her with open arms and literally grabbed her by the hands and gave her a tour of the
entire place.

By day two you would have though she had been living there for
years. She’s turned into a whole new kid just enjoying her new life with the
simple pleasures that most of us take for granted every day. It has been great seeing her come out of her shell be in the place where she is truly free to be herself.

Monday, July 28, 2014

It’s been a little over a week since I’ve been back. I’ve
been spending time with the kids at the house and also checking up on all those
who we support from their homes. Sometimes it’s difficult to balance the needs
with how exactly I can help, but with his perfect timing God brought us a way
to help with some of the struggles that these children are facing. There is
another occupational therapist in town, named Douglass, who asked us to
introduce him to some kids in need that aren’t currently receiving proper
therapy. So yesterday we loaded up and visited seven children in their homes so
that Douglass could do a preliminary assessment of their condition.

We visited Keila who is 2 years old and has microcephaly,
cerebral palsy and epilepsy. Her father works as a mechanic in town and her
mother stays home and takes care of the kids. Keila is the youngest of three.
Her mother tries to care for her, but doesn’t know where to begin because her
child has so many specific needs. The most pressing issue is getting Keila
proper therapy so that she can hopefully learn to sit and support her head on
her own. We met her mother at the District Hospital and got her set up with the
occupational therapists who are going to make splints for her legs to keep them
from becoming stiff and she will be getting therapy three times a week with
Douglass. After that we will see if we can get her some medication for her
epilepsy so that she can sleep better at night and doesn’t have as many
seizures.

Then we went to visit Allan. His mother is the matron at a
local primary school, who is in charge of keeping an eye on the boys who board
at the school. She lives in the dorms with her three children because her
husband threw them out of the house and abandoned them completely. Allan has
hydrocephalus and had an operation to relieve the pressure in his school when
he was younger. Now he is 7 years old and still needs to be supported to sit.
It is difficult to get him to therapy because his mother has to work, but we
talked to the principal and she agreed to allow the mother to take him to
therapy in the afternoons. We are also trying to see if Allan can start
attending nursery class at the school so that he can be able to socialize with
the other kids instead of sitting alone in the dorms all day.

We also reconnected with Victor this week. His family had
moved, so he was a little hard to find, but we found their new house and got to
see him again. Victor is five years old and has cerebral palsy and is unable to
sit, support his head and speak. His father left because he was unwilling to
support Victor. Now his mother is struggling to provide for her family because
it is difficult for her to find work with Victor at home because he needs so
much care. Victor also has some health complications besides being
malnourished. His breathing is very raspy, which makes eating difficult, and he
also has convulsions from time to time. He will start therapy this week and
will also see a physician to see if some of his medical needs can be addressed.
Victor also lays on his back all day because he has no seat that supports him
in the way that he needs to be able to sit on his own. I will be working with
Douglass to design him a sitting aide so that he will be able to sit properly,
which may help with his breathing issues and allow him to work the muscles that
need strengthening for him to be able to sit.

Emmanuel is two years old and has Down Syndrome. His father
blames the mother for having a child with a disability and Emmanuel suffers
because of that. He is severely malnourished and cannot even sit on his own
because his father is reluctant to allow his mother to feed and care for him in
the way that he needs. We stopped by his house unannounced and found him all
alone at home. Manu’s situation is difficult because even if we try to give him
support at home, his father keeps the mother from caring for him simply because
he is different. We will be starting Manu with light therapy until he gets
healthier and can get to a healthy weight so that he gains the strength that he
needs to be able to start developing gross motor skills.

I have known Mary for a long time. She is one of the first
children that I started supporting from her home. It is encouraging to see how
well her parents are caring for her. She has grown big and is even gaining
strength and can almost support her head on her own. If she is holding on to
the table she can almost stand on her own. I thought that the little extra
boost of therapy will help her continue to develop in the areas where she is a
little behind so we took Douglass to assess her and she will also be starting
therapy with him next week.

Moses was abandoned at the District Hospital last year. He
lives at a nearby children’s home ran by one of my friends. Right now he is not
receiving therapy and he is already such a strong little guy. He can crawl
around the house and if supported can walk, he just needs a little work on his
balance. He cannot speak, but he is the happiest little guy around. Along with
starting physical therapy, Douglass suggested that we take him by the
Orthepedic Office at District Hospital to see if we can get him fitted with
special shoes that will correct his gait and hopefully get him closer to being
able to walk on his own.

Josephine is the last child that we went to visit. Her
mother was in boarding school and came home pregnant. Josephine was born
premature and her mother abandoned her and hasn’t been seen or heard from
since. Josephine is five years old and has Down Syndrome. Her gross motor
skills are fine, but she has some delays in speech and fine motor skills.
Because her grandmother is not in the best health, Douglass agreed to pass by
the house and work with her from home. I recently sponsored Josephine to start
at a nursery school near her house. It was great to see her all clean in her
uniform and socializing with the other students. I plan on going back and
working with the teacher to come up with an educational plan for Josephine
because although her teacher is willing to have her in her class, she lacks the
knowledge of where to start when it comes to teaching her.

Many of these children come from single parent homes. It has
recently become so evident how difficult it is for these mothers to provide for
their children. Even those who are still with their husbands are often harassed
or overwhelmed with their children because they don’t get support from their
husbands. They are facing the dilemma of leaving their child unattended at home
while they work or staying home and struggling to care for their children
without an income. There is no easy solution. They all can’t come to the house,
but I am trying to help where possible to provide support and advice to work
with parents to be able to provide these precious little ones with the best
care from their homes. God has opened the doors for a great first step of
providing them with therapy and I have faith that he will continue to open up
more doors. Please keep these sweet little ones and their families in your
prayers as we continue to work alongside the parents.

People often ask me where feels more like home. Kitale or California? It seems like a simple question, but they both feel like home equally to me. After spending the last month back in California I started to think about it. California has been my home the longest. I love coming home to my family and friends who provide constant support even from afar. When I come back it's like we don't even miss a beat and pick up right where we left off. People are so generous and willing to support the work going on at Precious Kids center. I was given more donations than I could fit in the three suitcases I brought back and was overwhelmed by the financial support I received from the people who hear about PKC and want to get involved in whatever way they can. I am truly blessed and honored to call each and every one of you my friends.

The
other side of home is Kenya. These kids are my family. If they are having a bad
day they just need a hug they turn to me, on a good day they want me to share
their joy with them and everyday in between we live life together.It’s not always a walk in the park, but who wouldn’t love coming home to this every day?

I
am blessed to be a part of these two great worlds and grateful for all the
people in my life that make it possible.

Friday, April 18, 2014

Many of the kids at the house have been having some medical issues. So this week we set off to Nairobi to get scans and see doctors and were determined to leave with everyone settled and on the path to recovery.

Lillian was born with spina bifida. No one has taken her for treatment so we decided to take her to see if there was anything that needed to be done. We went to a mission hospital called Kijabe that is just outside of Nairobi. We were impressed with the clean facility and compotent doctors. After X-rays, an ultrasound and an MRI it was confirmed that her case is a mild one and that she does not need surgery, but we will keep an eye on her to make sure that things don’t change and that she continues to thrive.

Japheth was also having some medical issues. If he is fed and is in the seated position, he vomits frequently, but if he is lying down there is no problem. Reflux issues are common in children with Autism, but given his history of being burned by his abusive step-mother they wanted to check to make sure there was not more damage. So he underwent an endoscopy and they ruled out an esophageal stricture and anything else that would need immediate treatment. We were also advised to keep a close eye on him and in the future he may need an operation, but for now he will take an anti-acid and some other medicine to try to reduce the vomiting.

Augustus had an umbilical hernia that was operated on. We took him to a hospital for outpatient surgery and he is already recovering nicely after just one day. We were told that if it was done early, there is a lesser risk of complications in the future and we are glad that he is already feeling better.

It was a blessing that everyone was given proper treatment and that we finally have answers to some of their medical issues. It was also great to see how lovingly these doctors treat the patients here. We were given discounted rates on the procedures once the doctors heard about the work that is going on in Kitale and that children with disabilities are being served at Precious Kids Center. It was not only a blessing to make new friend and connections with doctors in Nairobi, but to finally have answers. Please continue to pray for Augustus, Lillian and Japheth as they continue to heal and live with their medical issues.

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About Me

Stories of my life serving children with disabilities in Kitale, Kenya. Relying on God to lead me in the right direction, meet the needs of the children he puts in my path and show them the same love that he has and will continue to show me. Living each day welcoming the new adventures each day brings knowing Christ is holding me and all of these precious children in his loving arms.